The Vigilante Awakens
by skca54
Summary: Eight years have passed since a vigilante last walked the streets of Chicago. Mindy and Dave have led legal lives with their family and Fusion is no more. However, something is growing within the City and two people are dead. Mindy must reassemble her team and go on the offensive.
1. Assembling The Team

**Authors Note:** _This story will be my twenty-third (published) story and may be just a short, on-off, story over a number of chapters._

 **Synopsis:** _This story is based on the characters from my_ **Forsaken Universe** _, but set in an AU future and does not necessarily indicate the future content of_ **Forsaken** _. This story is set around eight years beyond the current_ **Forsaken** _storyline._

* * *

 ** _Chicago, Illinois_**

It had been eight years, since I had last worn purple.

Eight years, since 'The Vigilante Purge' in Chicago. We had all gone back to what had passed for our normal lives. That had been easy for some, but more difficult for others. Some had still not fully acclimatised, even eight years later. Now, I was going to risk everything by wearing purple again and defending my home and my City.

Why, after all that time of being normal?

There was a new menace arising in the City and that menace just _had_ to be stopped. There was no way that I would just stand by and allow that menace to grow and to steadily consume the City that I called home. Everybody and everything that was dear to me was at risk. One, had already been permanently lost to me and another was not far from death's door.

No more – I would not stand for the loss of another!

* * *

 ** _March 24th_**

A lot had changed, in only eight years.

I was now twenty-six and surprisingly to my ordered mind, still alive – it was an age that I had never expected to ever reach, due to my nocturnal activities! My husband had reached the grand old age of thirty and he was still as handsome as when I had first met him, almost sixteen years previously, but much more rugged! Dave and Mindy Lizewski were and continued to be, upstanding members of the Chicago community and were regularly in the public eye – nobody considered that we might have also been the centre of the vigilantism in Chicago.

D-JAK had grown and it was our main source of income; we had grown to four clubs across the city and was showing signs of potential growth outside of Chicago. Nobody had set foot in a Safehouse in over five years – all of the equipment was still there hidden, safe and sound, awaiting the call to arms.

..._...

The twins were one day past their sixteenth birthday and doing well at school. They had never had much of a vigilante life, so they were just as normal as any other kids their age.

Anne-Marie had a reputation for being tough and determined. She was never short of a boyfriend, even though every boy knew full well the risks of disobeying her when she said 'no'! Many a boy had turned up back at school after a weekend with a new bruise or two. But, to the opposite sex, the 5-foot 4-inch tall young woman was very desirable, no matter _what_ she did to them!

Danny was just as tall, with an inch or two on his sister and again was rarely short of a girlfriend. He was also a star of D-JAK and along with his sister, was an instructor at the biggest club.

As for my other daughter...

She was now one month short of her eighteenth birthday, but the years had been hard for her and she had struggled to get by without her alter ego. Losing her vigilante status had hit her hard. She had finally worn out Voight's patience and his 'get out of jail free' cards, so now she was under a curfew and wearing a very fetching ankle bracelet! Her siblings had done their best to help her stay on the straight and narrow, but she had a tendency to shut herself off from everybody and hide in her room.

Her usual mentor had left Chicago five long years previously.

..._...

That mentor had of course been her British compatriot, Joshua Williams.

He and Chloe had gone through a rough patch when they were sixteen, which had just got worse and when they were no longer active vigilantes, they had split for good on difficult terms. As Joshua reached eighteen, he had returned to the United Kingdom and followed in his father's footsteps. He was now a Lieutenant in 42 Commando of the Royal Marines. He had kept in touch, of course, but we had not actually seen him for a little over two years – he was now twenty-three.

Chloe...

She had struggled with losing Joshua, as had Stephanie, but for very different reasons. Ultimately, after finishing school, she had followed in her own father's footsteps and she was now a Lieutenant (Junior Grade) in the United States Navy. She flew Seahawk helicopters off destroyers and was very good at it. Being highly intelligent, Chloe had advanced at a fast pace – focussing on her training to help her get past Joshua.

Despite their animosity towards each other, I needed them both.

* * *

Talking of training, I had not let the moss gather beneath my own feet, either.

My thoughts were interrupted by a voice in my headset.

"Lima Zulu One Niner Eight. Turn right on Taxi Lane Two. Contact Ground Control on frequency one two one decimal six five. Welcome to Gotham International. Over."

I acknowledged the transmission and made the ordered turns as I left the main runway, Two Seven Left. I passed control to my pilot and we taxied towards the third of five large hangers to the west of the airfield and my pilot gently eased the Gulfstream G500 jet to a halt with the foot brakes.

"Perfect as ever, Erika – thank you!"

"I am _always_ perfect, Mindy – enjoy yourself!" Erika grinned as I unbuckled my straps and rose out of the co-pilot's seat.

Flying had become my newest skill – I loved the freedom it gave me. As I released the hatch and it smoothly motored open, automatically extending the stairs, I saw my ride.

A tall young woman with long legs stood beside a striking red Mustang.

..._...

"Good to see you, Cat – you're looking good!"

"Mindy!"

Cat leapt at me, hugging me tightly. I heard a wolf whistle from the Gulfstream and saw Erika laughing.

"Not in public, Cat!" I growled as menacingly as possible, but Cat just ignored me.

Selina 'Cat' Kyle, was still an active Vigilante, along with her soon to be husband, Bruce Wayne. When I finally pushed her away, she drove me into Gotham and more specifically, Fox's domain beneath Wayne Tower.

..._...

I did not stay long.

After explaining my detailed requirements to a cheerful Lucius Fox, I left the man to his tasks and headed back to the airport. I wished that I had time to check in with Bruce, but time was against me. Cat gave me another hug and we said our goodbyes.

The next destination was Southampton.

* * *

 ** _Southampton, United Kingdom_**

I departed the airport in a hired Jaguar XF.

My destination was Bickleigh Barracks to the north, the home of 42 Commando. Through my contacts I had pulled some strings and gained access to surprise one of my closest and oldest friends.

At the main gate to the Barracks, I was asked to wait and my escort arrived, Colour Sergeant Jim Reynolds.

"Welcome, ma'am. I'm just setting the lads to some close quarters combat – would you care to try your hand?"

"You mean I can beat up a bunch of Royal Marine Commandos?"

"You can try!" Reynolds grinned.

"Challenge accepted, Colour Sergeant!"

..._...

"Right, gentlemen, we have a guest here today – she is here to kick your fucking arses!"

There was a general murmuring along the lines of 'who the fuck is he kidding'! I strode confidently onto the mat flexing my arms and wearing combat trousers, a t-shirt and lightweight jungle boots.

"Come and get it, boys!" I growled.

Reynolds snapped his fingers and pointed at a six-foot Marine who stepped forward with a grin. I rolled my eyes and gauged my muscular opponent. He obviously saw me as a young woman who could not look after herself...

Big mistake – huge!

..._...

I let him come close and then I pounced, not pulling any of my punches and leaving the man face down on the mat in obvious pain.

"You need to attack – no matter _who_ your opponent is. You see before you a _little girl_ and you see no threat – well this _little girl_ just killed your fucking _arse_ , Marine!" I growled into his ear. "Learn from it!"

"Yes, ma'am!" The humbled Marine responded.

An annoyed Reynolds clicked his fingers twice and pointed at two more Marines. They looked pissed at me for some reason or other – no idea why!

..._...

I faced them as they advanced and broke my normal rules and telegraphed my actions, but then I instantly switched to a different attack, catching them out with the feint. With another deft move I sent the right hand Marine cannoning into his colleague, sending them both sprawling.

There was a collective, 'ow', from the assembled Marines as the collision had been very spectacular and had left both Marines on the mat rolling around in pain. Reynolds, needless to say, was now pissed. He clicked his fingers four times and four more Marines strode forwards taking up positions at each corner of the mat.

How familiar, I thought!

"Four attackers, no escape..." I muttered to myself. "Let's do it for real, this time!"

They all came at me together.

..._...

Two and a half minutes later there were seven Royal Marines Commandoes on the mat in various stages of pain and humiliation, with at least two hugging their more delicate regions! Before Reynolds could do anything else, I heard a loud and strikingly familiar bellow from the far side of the gym.

"What the bloody hell is going on in here, Colour Sergeant!"

"Some training, Sir!"

Reynolds snapped a smart salute which was returned by the six-foot four-inch tall Royal Marines Lieutenant as he approached.

"What a bloody shambles...! Who is...? I might have bloody known – only one woman could cause so much carnage!" He turned to his Marines. "How many times have I told you lot to _never_ drop your guard, no matter _who_ stands against you – hope you all bloody learnt something today... Colour Sergeant clear up this debacle. You – with me!"

"Aye, aye, Sir!" Reynolds grinned.

"Of course, _left_ enant!" I chuckled.

I followed the officer out of the gym where once around a corner, he turned to me and wrapped me in a very tight and slightly painful hug as he lifted me off my feet.

"God, I've missed you, Mindy!" Joshua Williams said.

"I've missed you too, Josh..."

..._...

"I know why you are here, but I can't leave all this – it is my dream," Josh said as he put me back down.

I grinned.

"All sorted – you have been transferred – get yourself packed; you are now mine, Jackal!"

* * *

 ** _HM Naval Base, Clyde_**

As luck would have it, my next port of call was in Scotland.

We flew to Glasgow Airport and I drove up to the Naval Base where I found the Ticonderoga-class cruiser, USS Normandy, alongside. I was welcomed at the gangway and escorted to the Captain's cabin.

"Mindy – glad you made it!"

I received a big hug from Captain Ryan Bennett.

"Good to see you, Ryan."

"You know, she may not go along with your plans," Ryan began. "She's a stubborn bitch, we both know that, but she is living her dream right now, however, there are two things missing from her life – two enormous voids that need filling."

"I know; I just came from seeing one of them and I hope I can entice her with the other."

Ryan reached for a walkie-talkie.

"Lieutenant Bennett, my cabin!"

"Short and sweet!" I grinned.

* * *

Two decks below and two hundred feet aft, a young female officer groaned as the walkie-talkie on her belt squawked.

"You in trouble again, Lieutenant?"

"All the damn time!" The lieutenant grimaced as she pulled off her flight helmet and climbed out of the right seat of the MH-60R Seahawk helicopter. "I better run before the old man gives me the lash!"

"Or maybe the brig again?"

"That was _not_ funny!"

Minutes later, the out of breath young officer smoothed down her flight suit and knocked on the door of the Commanding Officer's cabin.

"Enter. Shut the hatch behind you!" Came the response.

"Lieutenant Bennett, reporting as ordered, Captain!" The young lieutenant stated as she stood at attention before her grinning Commanding Officer/Father.

"She's gonna bust something standing there like that!"

Chloe Bennett turned in shock and for a moment just stared at her best friend – absolutely the very last person that she expected to see so far from home.

"Christ, Lieutenant, hug her already!" Her father laughed.

"Mindy!"

The two friends hugged each other for an age and there were more than a few tears on both sides.

* * *

After an age, we separated, both feeling more than a little embarrassed.

"Thank God, for that," Ryan quipped. "No lesbian sex is allowed in the Captain's Cabin!"

The Captain received two very nasty glares to which he just chuckled.

"What are you doing here?" Chloe demanded. "You knew, _Dad_?"

Ryan nodded.

"Mindy needs your help, back home..."

"When do I leave?" Chloe exclaimed. "Anything to get away from Captain bloody Bligh, here!"

Ryan feigned a hurt expression and laughed.

"Just take her, it's like hell on earth, having an insubordinate bitch like her aboard!"

* * *

The flight back across the Atlantic gave me plenty of time to consider the other members of the team.

Marty and Kim were both still living in Chicago with their eight-year-old son, Matthew. I would be able to count on both Battle Guy and Hawk, although Matthew had no idea that his parent's used to be active vigilantes, not least members of the famous Fusion.

Abby was working at a large IT company in the city and naturally she had jumped at the chance to be part of Fusion again, so Hal was ready and hard at work.

Hit Girl was a given and so was Kick-Ass. Jackal and Shadow were in the bag – at least I hoped so! Leon, or rather Mathilda, was still active and had always been, but she was still home-based in Chicago, so she too had headed home as soon as I had called her. Cathy also jumped at the chance to help, she was lonely and we spent a lot of time together. She had her husband and only daughter away at sea and her nephew was no longer living at home.

..._...

So where was Curtis, which also brought up the question: where was his partner in crime, Megan?

They were both living in an apartment – one of _my_ apartments, which I had given them as a wedding gift. Yes, the two nineteen-year-olds were both married and living in Chicago. I had not been to see them as yet, I wanted to surprise them when I returned home. I knew that they would not let me down, so Wildcat and Trojan would be in the bag, too.

Erika had signed up instantly – hell, she was already my pilot!

I was very worried about recruiting Stephanie and the twins. I knew that they would sign up immediately too, but... They were my kids and...

Maybe I could find them something out of the way and safe...

..._...

Now, came the bad part.

Marcus and Paige – they would be against me reforming Fusion. They had just got used to their kids being safe. I also had my seven-year-old brother to think about. Damon had no idea what we had all done in years past and Marcus wanted to keep it that way.

I had not mentioned Hailee.

It had happened so quickly, but it had been the opening shot of what was looking to become a war. Lieutenant Vicky Richards had been gunned down one night by unknown assailants. Nobody had a name for them – except some called them 'Shadows'.

Naturally, Hailee had reacted badly to the death of her mother. Hailee was twenty-six, like me, and she was a member of the CPD SWAT. The death had twisted her and I could see Petra going rogue on us – she wanted justice and I understood that. Only, I knew the pitfalls of revenge – I had been there and I had only survived because of one man, Dave.

For now, though, Hailee was listening to me and we talked a lot; I hoped that would keep her on track.

..._...

There had been another shooting, that same day and that had left Sergeant Sam Fellowes in the ICU. It had been his nineteen-year-old son, Cameron, who had helped persuade me to fight the Shadows. Cameron had been distraught and he had needed somebody to talk to and that had been me. I had promised him that I would avenge his father if the worst happened.

It was what I did.


	2. Reactivating Fusion

**_Two weeks later_**

 ** _Chicago_**

"You sure it's safe?"

"Mindy, it's good – just press the goddamn button!" Marty growled.

I did as I was ordered and the elevator moved downwards at speed before coming to a gentle rest at the bottom of the shaft. I placed my hand on the plate before I was shouted at and the doors slid open smoothly. The lights came on, illuminating the tunnel. It felt eerie, the place had seen no life for five years and we were to be the first to enter the place.

At the end of the corridor, I placed my hand on another glass plate and the steel door slid open and more lights came on illuminating an armoured glass box.

"Now, either we are let in, or we're locked in this box until we die..." Marty said.

"Thanks – just what I needed to know!" I growled back.

Marty grinned and punched the screen of his tablet. There was a dull clunk and lights came on and then the thunderous sound of the industrial air-conditioning starting up.

"She's alive!" Marty grinned.

The final door slid open and I set foot inside Safehouse F. It felt like coming home after many, many years away.

..._...

Marty brought the remaining systems back online.

The security logs showed no activity in the past five years – which was good. There was a lot of dust everywhere, but otherwise, everything was intact. I walked into the armoury first – every damn weapon would need a damn good clean: not easy when you considered that there were over two hundred firearms in there!

Next, I walked to the glass shield. There, was my pride and joy – the Panigale that had kept me safe for so many years. Now it probably would not even start! No matter – new machines were on their way. New vehicles too. All the old vehicles and motorcycles would be put into storage and then refurbished when spare time was available, just in case...

"I need to do some major updating, but that should only take a couple of weeks."

"Thanks, Marty – we'll need those two weeks just to get up to speed. Everybody is due to arrive over the next couple of days. I hope it works out; we haven't been a team for a long time..."

"If anybody can do it, Hit Girl can!" Marty replied.

* * *

 ** _The following morning_**

 ** _Glenview_**

The Ducati 959 Panigale in brilliant red swept in through the gates and came to a rapid halt.

The rider, clad in dark blue leathers removed the matching dark blue helmet and smiled at the house before climbing off her motorcycle.

"Chloe!" A tall young girl burst out of the front door and ran towards the rider.

"Anne-Marie!" Chloe responded, hugging the girl tightly.

"Mom's waiting for you and, err so is somebody else... He arrived just a few minutes ago..." Anne-Marie said as she walked into the house followed by Chloe.

..._...

"Hi, Chloe!"

"Mindy! Good to see you – and you Dave!"

"You're looking as good as ever, girl," Dave said, hugging his friend.

"What is _she_ doing here?" Came a voice.

Chloe span around and focussed on the speaker.

"Thanks for that, Joshua, I missed you too!" Chloe growled back.

"Do I need to bang both your heads together?" Dave asked good-naturedly.

"We'll behave," Josh replied quickly and pulled Chloe towards the stairs. "Let's go find Steph."

* * *

"Are we, at least, going to be civil to each other while we are here?"

I turned to my former girlfriend and smiled.

"I think we can do that for Mindy and Dave – I know things went to crap between us, but I don't hate you, Chloe."

"That's good to know, Josh and it _is_ good to see you again," Chloe replied with a smile.

"You, too, Chloe..."

I knocked on Stephanie's bedroom door, she still had the signs indicating that we were about to enter the 'British Sector'!

"Enter!"

Stephanie was lying on her bed staring into nothing.

..._...

"Hi, kid!"

"Joshua!"

Stephanie leapt off her bed and almost flattened as she gave me an enormous and somewhat painful hug – she was strong for a seventeen-year-old girl!

"At least _somebody_ is happy to see me!" I laughed as I peeled the girl off me.

Stephanie scowled as she looked at us both and there was sorrow in her grey-blue eyes.

"You two kissed yet?" she asked and then she saw our expressions. "Please tell me that you have at least hugged!"

* * *

They both looked a little sheepish as they stood there.

The two of them were so damn stupid to have allowed each other to slip away. They were made for each other, but they had thrown it all away over something _so_ stupid! Josh turned and after a brief smile at Chloe wrapped his arms around his former girlfriend. Chloe did the same with a slight hesitation. The hug grew as they both seemed to enjoy the feeling of each other's bodies after so long apart. Then they tentatively kissed each other on the lips and the kiss grew deeper and deeper.

'Oh, wow!' I thought.

Then Chloe seemed to drag Josh down to the floor and they writhed there for a couple of minutes before Chloe seemed to lose her blouse and then Josh expertly unclipped her bra and it flew into the air and landed on my bed beside me. For a moment, I got a good look at Chloe's ample breasts as Josh mauled them. Damn, it was one hell of a turn on and I found myself shoving my right hand down the front of my knickers!

..._...

Josh continued to strip his former, or was it now current, girlfriend and before long Chloe kicked off her trainers and then her jeans, followed by her knickers until she was completely starkers. As I continued to watch, Josh feverishly tore at his own trousers and slid them down his legs – nice backside, I thought! Chloe spread her legs and my eyes went wide as the deed began – Josh thrust himself inside Chloe like they always used to – yes, I knew what was happening behind closed doors and at the time it kind of freaked me out; hell, I was only ten at the time!

I gave up all pretence of hiding what I was doing to myself and pushed up my t-shirt and bra so that I could reach my nipples, so, while my right hand was busy down below, my left was busy up top...

What an afternoon!

* * *

"I wonder what they are doing up there – I mean, it's been quite a while, Mom."

"It has – however, they have a lot to catch up on and Steph loves Josh and I really hope that he can snap your sister out of her current state – I want the fun Stephanie back. Anyhow, I hear no signs of fighting!"

"I want that Steph back too, Mom..." Anne-Marie replied.

"Maybe..."

I stopped as an unearthly, but familiar scream erupted from up the stairs, closely followed by another, equally familiar, but much younger, scream.

"Oh, fuck!" Anne-Marie exclaimed.

"Precisely..." I chuckled. "Are they having a damn threesome?"

" _Mom!_ " Anne-Marie exclaimed going slightly pink in the face. "That's my sister up there!"

"I know..." I replied with a twinkle in my eye.

It was not the first time that we had all heard Stephanie scream during a sexual activity. She had been 'active' since she was sixteen. There was an almighty joint scream from both girls and a yell from Josh, then silence.

"Cool!" I said with a grin.

Anne-Marie was far too mortified to say anything!

* * *

Chloe and Josh finally separated, sweat pouring off of them both.

The two of them just laid there panting on my bedroom floor, ignoring the public display of their partially, in Josh's case, and fully, in Chloe's case, naked bodies and I got my first look at Josh's 'equipment' – damn he was big! I had never actually seen anything so impressive outside of internet porn... Chloe too had a body to die for; I was no lesbian, but still, her body was perfect.

"You like what you see?" Chloe asked with a mischievous smile as she ran her eyes over my own exposed breasts. I had removed the bra completely, along with my t-shirt earlier on.

"Not bad at all!" I replied, blushing slightly still out of breath and breathing hard.

It surprised me a little that Chloe showed no hint of shame, despite having just had full on sex in front of a seventeen-year-old girl! But then there had been stories...

..._...

Joshua then surprised us both.

He turned his head to face Chloe and spoke gently.

"Chloe Bennett, would you do me the honour of being my wife?"

I gasped, putting both hands over my mouth – then quickly dropping my right as it smelled. Chloe froze, but then her expression changed as the most enormous smile appeared on her face. Then tears began to pour down her cheeks as she rolled onto her side to face Josh.

"Fuck me, yes I will!"

Then they kissed and I saw Josh 'growing' before my very eyes. I did not think that I would be able to cope with another orgasm like my last one, so I quickly abandoned _my_ bedroom and ran downstairs grabbing my t-shirt on the way.

* * *

As I entered the kitchen, I found Mindy and a very red faced Anne-Marie staring at me and I suddenly realised that they had probably heard the entire episode!

I blushed rather badly and Mindy laughed.

"So – you three enjoy yourselves then?" Mindy inquired.

"It was those fuck-bunnies up there, not me – well, I got off too, but..."

"We _heard_..." Anne-Marie muttered.

"Start at the beginning, Steph," Mindy suggested, cutting me off.

Considering that my knickers were soaked, I remained standing. Anne-Marie must have noticed because she rolled her eyes as she also took in my missing bra.

"Well, the idiots seemed to just be ignoring each other, like they each had the plague or something! They hadn't even kissed or hugged, for fuck's sake!"

Mindy was smirking.

"So I suggested that they should at least hug. Josh hugged Chloe and then Chloe reciprocated. Then they kissed and then the tongues started..."

"Ewww!"

I stared at my younger sister for a moment.

"I've seen _you_ using your own tongue on a boy's tonsils more than once, little sister!"

* * *

Anne-Marie blushed, savagely!

I raised an eyebrow at that comment, as I was not aware that my youngest daughter had actually gone that far with a boy!

"Back to Josh and Chloe..." Anne-Marie interjected quickly, changing the subject away from her supposedly non-existent sex life.

"Within minutes, Chloe had lost her blouse and then her bra and Josh was manhandling her boobs..." Stephanie went on. "Then, before I knew it, Chloe was starkers and Josh had pulled down his trousers and... I'm sure you know what happened next, oh embarrassed sister of mine!"

Anne-Marie was a brilliant shade of red. For some reason, talk of kissing and sex often embarrassed her – kill a man, no emotion; talk about sex, blush city! She glared at her big sister and did not respond.

"Well, needless to say, this hand got a lot of use and I think it needs a damn good wash!" Stephanie said with a brief giggle, waving her right hand in the air.

"Ewww!" _I_ exclaimed. I did not really want to know about either of my daughters' personal and private habits.

"You did sound like you had fun!" Anne-Marie conceded, still a deep shade of pink.

"We all pretty much came at the same time..."

"Yeah, we heard!" I growled.

"Then, they just laid there – wow, did you know that Josh was _that big!_ I've never seen something like that before..."

"Yeah – I've seen _it_ before – let's move on!" I interrupted.

"Well – Josh shocked the fuck out of me and Chloe for that matter: he only went and fucking proposed to fucking Chloe!" Stephanie exclaimed and then there was total silence in the kitchen.

I was about to respond when there was a resounding scream from upstairs.

"Oh yeah, I left them beginning round two!" Stephanie added.


	3. Fusion Returns

**_Three weeks later  
Saturday Night_**

 ** _Grant Park, Chicago_**

South Lake Shore Drive was at a standstill.

Normally, it would have been heaving with traffic but that night, a Saturday, there was a standoff. The Drive was blocked at East Jackson Drive by some eighty plus black-clad Shadows, all masked and all armed with swords, bows and firearms. Facing off against them, half a mile to the south, at East Balbo Avenue were a combination of forty-five SWAT and Chicago PD Officers dressed in riot gear.

Nobody had moved, for almost an hour. Other Chicago PD Officers had cordoned off the area from East Monroe Street to the North, to South Columbus Drive in the west, to East Balbo Avenue to the south. The east was blocked by Lake Michigan.

It seemed hopeless – the Police would be massacred. By fate, the nearest National Guard were many hours away and could not make it before dawn, if at all.

At eight thirty that night, war came to the City, only it was to be a war to _save_ the City of Chicago.

* * *

Out of the night came a black helicopter.

It flew close to the water before rising up and the sleek aircraft came to a very rapid stop dead centre between the opposing forces and hovered over South Lake Shore Drive. Two 1.6-inch ropes flew out of each side of the helicopter and dropped to the ground. Each rope was suspended from a bracket on either side of the helicopter, mounted above each access door.

Almost immediately, shapes began to jump out of the helicopter, descending very fast to the ground below and taking up position, automatic weapons raised to their shoulders, a few yards away from the rotor down-blast. A soon as the last shapes had hit the ground, the ropes were hauled up and potent looking machine guns poked out from each side of the helicopter.

On the ground, the shapes rose as one as the helicopter moved off and took up station several hundred yards out over the calm waters of Lake Michigan.

* * *

The black shapes spread out across the Drive, facing the Shadows and some went down on one knee, their weapons ready at their shoulders.

Four remained standing. All wore a similar armoured suit that covered their bodies from head to toe. The only difference seemed to be the weapons carried and the coloured markings of each suit. The obvious leaders, still standing, seemed to be two men and two women.

One woman had purple markings and carried a pair of Katana swords on her back. On the belt around her waist she bore a pair of pistols. On the side of her right boot was another, much shorter sword. Beside that armoured form, towering above her, was a much more menacing form, with yellow and green markings. He also carried weapons on his back; two Ko-Wakizashi blades and two composite batons. At his waist were a pair of pistols and in his right hand, he held a SIG MCX SBR assault rifle.

Of the other pair of armoured vigilantes, the woman had dark blue markings and in her left hand she carried a vicious-looking twin-bladed bō-staff while a compound bow and quiver rested on her back. A pair of FN Five-seveN pistols were evident on her belt as well as a SIG MPX-K submachine gun in a holster on her right thigh. The man had tan markings and was heavily armed with a SIG MCX SBR assault rifle across his chest, a Ninja-To blade on his back and a pair of FN Five-seveN pistols on his belt at each hip. On each thigh he bore a pair of Fairburn-Sykes fighting knives.

..._...

On the ground, kneeling, were six more vigilantes.

Four were obviously women and the first bore brown markings on a tan background. That vigilante flexed her fists and three titanium claws shot out of the knuckles on each armoured gauntlet. Teamed up nicely with the lethal claws were a pair of swords on her back – a Katana and a Wakizashi and on her right leg, she bore a Tanto. At her waist was a SIG Sauer P250 Compact pistol and at her shoulder was an FN P90 PDW.

Beside her was a man of larger stature, he had a large blade on his back and a SIG Sauer P250 at his waist. He also had an FN P90 at his shoulder. His combat suit bore dark green markings. Beside him was another woman, this one was armed with a pair of Sais and a pair of SIG Sauer P250 Compact pistols carried on the belt around her waist. To the shoulder of her combat suit that bore sky blue markings, she had a SIG MCX SBR.

Next along was another woman, she had white and pink markings and bore a pair of Tactical Katana swords on her back and a SIG MPX-K on each thigh. On each boot, she carried a Tanto in a sheath. The last woman wore a combat suit with striking red markings. On her back were two halves of a bō-staff and a quiver. In her left hand was a compound bow and on her right thigh was a SIG MPX-K submachine gun.

The final member was a tall individual with orange markings. He was armed with a pair of viciously sharp Ninja-To swords, a brace of four throwing knives and a pair of SIG Sauer P250 pistols.

Even if nobody recognised the new arrivals, the purple, yellow and green were a dead giveaway as to who they were...

Fusion were back!

* * *

A cheer went up from the assembled Police as the four senior members of Fusion were instantly recognised.

The nearest news broadcaster was going nuts.

"You getting this?" He called to his camera man, incredulous at what he was witnessing.

"Hell, yeah!" Came the response as the reporter turned back to the camera.

"We are witnessing history here, beside Lake Michigan: Fusion has returned to Chicago, and in style. A helicopter assault – typically Hit Girl! Before me, I can identify Hit Girl, Kick-Ass, Shadow and Jackal – the leaders of Fusion." The man laughed. "The one with the vicious claws out the front... She has to be Wildcat, which means beside her should be Trojan and Splinter. Of the others we probably have Petra, Hawk and I think, Psyche. We have no idea who is flying the helicopter, or who is manning the machine guns on that helicopter. Wait... Hit Girl and Kick-Ass are moving towards four approaching SWAT members."

* * *

 ** _Agusta-Westland AW139  
Call sign: Havoc_**

" _Havoc_ , maintain your orbit, six hundred yards from the shore!"

"Copy, Battle Guy: holding at six hundred, _Havoc_ out!"

Mist turned in her seat to check on her crewmembers. Rogue and Ravage grinned out from under their flight helmets as they manned the two Browning M3M .50-calibre machine guns that were mounted, one in each side-door on a pintle mount. Each heavy machine gun had a hopper of 600-rounds ready to fire. The weapon could empty that hopper in less than a minute if required.

"Ensure those safety lines are secure, guys!"

"Yes, ma'am!" The two sixteen-year-old vigilantes replied and checked their safety lines as ordered.

* * *

 ** _Safehouse F  
Command Centre_**

"Fusion, no movement from Shadows – Leon is taking up overwatch position!" Hal advised the deployed team.

"Hit Girl copies!"

Hal watched the situation on several high-definition colour screens live. Cameras were located at strategic points and relaying their images directly to the Command Centre. One camera was located in a stabilised turret that was mounted beneath the nose of _Havoc_.

Battle Guy was collating the weapons of the Shadows so the team would know what they were up against before the attack began. That would allow a strategy to be formulated for an effective attack or defence.

* * *

 ** _Three weeks earlier_**

 ** _Glenview_**

"Congratulations!" I exclaimed when the two lovebirds finally descended to the kitchen.

I pulled them both into a hug, which felt remarkably good. As I pulled away I slapped both of them around the head, hard.

"Ow!" Both exclaimed together.

"About time, you sorted yourselves out – fucking idiots!" I growled.

"Yes, we deserved that," Josh conceded as he rubbed his head, an action mirrored by Chloe with her own.

"Sorry, guys, we were both _very_ stupid..." Chloe admitted as she held Joshua's hand tightly.

* * *

"So, we missed anything?" Dave asked as he came into the kitchen with Danny and took in the scene before them.

"These two have had sex twice and Joshua proposed!" Anne-Marie blurted out before anybody else could say anything.

"I watched!" Stephanie added with a dirty smirk.

"Okay – nothing new then, just eight years late!" Dave chuckled.

"You two are _so_ strange!" Danny commented as he looked at Chloe and Josh.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, kid!"

"I thought I might need to smack you two to get you both to see sense," Dave commented.

"Please don't, purple bitch already did that!" Chloe admitted with a grin over towards me.

Dave laughed as I smiled sweetly.

"About fucking time!"

* * *

Josh turned to Stephanie.

"I hear you have been having a tough time. Hence your current ankle accessory. I feel responsible for that..."

"Don't, Josh, it was not your fault," Stephanie replied softly.

"It was worse for you, giving up your vigilante persona, than it was for the rest of us. Your indoctrination was very similar to Mindy's. You both suffered greatly with being forced to live without your other persona. Mindy had Dave, you seemed to latch onto me and I helped you get through the first couple of years before I left. All the shit that you went through, it began _after_ I left. Then, to top it off, _you_ get me back together with my girl..."

"It didn't exactly take much," Stephanie explained with a scowl. "Three words and I had a live porno on my bedroom floor!"

There was laughter at that comment.

"Mindy helped me to find Joshua the first time and she got us back together the second time, now. But it took you, Stephanie, to allow me to keep Joshua _permanently_ ," Chloe hugged the rather bewildered girl very tightly. "I owe you big time, Steph, big time. Anything you need..."

"If you will all excuse us, I think Stephen and I need to go and chat," Josh said, dragging Stephanie back up the stairs.

* * *

"Okay, Stephanie, from the top."

"Shop lifting, resisting arrest, assaulting a Police Officer, vandalism..."

"That doesn't sound too bad..."

"That was just my first day – the day after my thirteenth birthday; you said to start from the top!"

"Fucking hell, Stephanie!"

* * *

 ** _Grant Park, Chicago_**

The Shadows had not responded to our arrival.

That was good; it would give us more time to prepare. The SWAT were very pleased to see us – their current leader knew us and had fought alongside us, many years before as a junior SWAT member. That was good having somebody like that, who knew how we operated.

I also understood that many cops also breathed a sigh of relief that they were not going to have to fight against extreme odds, alone. Between us, we formulated the beginnings of a plan and confirmed a communications arrangement. I left Shadow and Jackal to finish things off while I went back to our charges, with Kick-Ass.

On the way, I thought back to the first time that everybody had been together in the Safehouse for many years.

* * *

 ** _A little over two weeks previously_**

 ** _Safehouse F_**

"Welcome, everybody! It is _so_ good to see you all together, after all this time. So much has changed and everybody has grown up," Mindy began.

"Many of you were not even in your teens, the last time that we fought for this City. Now, the City needs Fusion again and we will respond with everything that we can muster. This time around, we are more powerful and we can hit harder.

"As before, Dave and I will be leading from the front. Please let me introduce our two Lieutenants. Firstly, we have Shadow, otherwise known as Lieutenant Chloe Bennett, United States Navy. Chloe, for those unaware, is a Naval Aviator – she flies helicopters."

Chloe grinned and waved at the applause.

"Now, some will remember that Shadow rarely followed orders, when she was young..."

"I'm still, young, thank you very much!" Chloe interjected.

"... Younger! I had hoped that a few years under naval discipline would have improved on that..."

"Obviously, you haven't seen my personnel jacket!" Chloe quipped.

"Actually, I have..." I replied as a grinning Abby passed me a tablet. "Wow, she's been in hack more than she's been out! Two days in the brig?"

"Yeah, that was embarrassing..." Chloe admitted, blushing furiously. "I upset Daddy... Where the hell did you get my damn file from, anyway?"

"A girl never reveals her sources," Abby said with smirk.

Chloe mouthed the word 'bitch' towards her friend.

"Twenty-five thousand dollars' worth of damage to a Seahawk helicopter?"

"The ship moved, what can I say?" Chloe replied somewhat defensively.

Everybody laughed.

"Next, we have Jackal, otherwise known as _Left_ enant Joshua Williams of Her Majesty's Royal Marines. Josh was a force to be reckoned with before, but now he is a Commando and a member of one of the world's elite fighting organisations. Chloe and Josh's orders carry the same weight as mine or Dave's. Remember that, Wildcat!"

"Why pick on me?" Megan whined.

"Because you are you!" Josh laughed.

"I know!" Megan grinned to some more laughter.

Once the laughter and chatter had calmed down, I continued.

"I have purchased two helicopters: _Havoc_ and _Devastation_. They are currently in Gotham being equipped for Fusion operations."

"She wanted purple Apache's, but I said no..." Dave chuckled. "She wanted a hollowed out volcano to hide it in as well!"

I ignored him and continued with my briefing.

"Erika is our chief pilot and she normally flies our G-V, but right now, as Mist, she is in command of _Havoc_. I am dubiously giving command of _Devastation_ to Shadow – crash it and I will haunt you for the next thousand years!"

"I only crashed that one damn helicopter – jeez!" Chloe growled, muttering obscenities under her breath.

Everybody laughed.

* * *

"Alright, you cunts, let's see what you can do now!"

"This ought to be good!" Megan commented to Dave.

"It has been many years since the three of them fought, so yeah," Dave agreed.

There was a difference, though. Joshua was a highly trained and current Royal Marines Commando. Chloe was a US Navy close quarters combat specialist and very current. Mindy, on the other hand, had not fought properly for a while, so the fight between the three of them should be good.

"Who do you want to win?" Megan asked.

"Mindy, of course!"

"I want Josh to win."

"Why not Chloe, or Mindy?"

"I missed Josh and he's the reason I have the life that I have."

"Sounds fair."

As we watched, the three friends faced off against each other.

"Kick her fucking arse, Joshua!" Stephanie shouted down from the walkway.

"Who?" Josh yelled back.

"Kick both of their Yank arses!" Stephanie responded.

"Traitorous bitch!" Mindy yelled up at her daughter.


End file.
